The National Blackbelt League (NBL) is the only international sport karate league based upon a series of open tournaments which rate and qualify blackbelt players to become official sport karate world champions at a year-end championship World Games. NBL ratings are free (no membership fee) to all players who attend and place at NBL tournaments. NBL tournaments are open to all ranks. Every NBL tournament is rated “AAA” with Sport Karate International (SKIL) Ratings (which rates both blackbelts and under blackbelts), so all ranks following SKIL can get the most points by competing in NBL tournaments (see SKIL ratings information in the back of any Sport Karate Magazine or Section 3 of any SKITA Handbook). The NBL has been designed over a period of many years to help develop and ensure the continuing professional and efficient direction of martial arts as a world-wide sport.
The NBL ensures true world championship status to players of the sport by a unique system of conference competition leading into the Super Grands World Games to crown each year’s world champions. The NBL conference season runs from March 1 through September 30. Each NBL regional conference consists of large sectioned areas of a continent and may have up to one (1) tournament per month during the season for a maximum of six (6) tournaments per conference per year. There are also three (3) national conferences which consist of up to six (6) of the regional conferences’ largest tournaments. These conferences are for individuals and teams that want stiffer competition by traveling to different areas, instead of just one regional area, and for those who want to earn a higher seeded position for the Super Grands World Games. The competition in each of the conferences is a points race within that conference, and competitors are rated in Sport Karate Magazine during those months of competition.
An NBL conference Commissioner attends each conference tournament to represent the NBL, evaluate the tournament and process the players’ results. An NBL rules Arbitrator also attends each tournament to conduct the rules meeting, direct the Center Referees and render all final decisions regarding rules of play and penalties.
As a player, your participation in the NBL will provide the best recognition at an affordable cost to achieve true sport karate world championship status.
The near future will see the Sport Karate International Tournament Alliance (SKITA) host certification clinics to further improve the fairness of competition. Referees will be tested both by practical application and in written format, and selection will be “open” such as all other sports have and not just to martial arts practitioners. We hope to see you as part of NBL this year and wish you the best in the sport.

NBL DIVISIONS

1. TOURNAMENT SEASON -The NBL tournament season to earn rating points and qualify for world title competition runs from March through September. The NBL Super Grands World Games (which is the final championship to ascertain the year’s sport karate world champions) takes place in November, December or January of each year.
2. CONFERENCE COMPETITION - Any Blackbelt competitor may participate in any NBL tournament; however, the points he/she wins will only count towards that conference’s standings. A competitor may be rated in any number of divisions that he/she qualifies in and may go to the NBL Super Grands as a seeded player of any conference(s) that he/she is rated in at the end of the year. He/she may compete in as many divi- sions at the Super Grands that he/she qualifies for. (See Wild Card Seeding also). Those competitors rated in one of the top five positions in any division of any conference automatically qualify to compete in the Super Grands World Games. (Those competitors will be notified by mail in October and their names shall appear in the final conference ratings in the November-February edition of Sport Karate Magazine, which comes out in October.) The higher your conference rating, the higher your seeded positioning in the double eliminations at the Super Grands. Internationally and nationally rated players get preferred placements (forms) or byes (sparring), if any, in each round.
   
3. GETTING RATED - You must compete in at least one conference tournament and will receive points for any blackbelt win up to eight (8) places (top four (4) for NBL 10 point sanctioned tournaments). This will earn you points toward one of the ninety-nine (99) divisions that the NBL rates for blackbelts. Competitors in the NBL ratings placing within the top five (5) rated positions in any of the ninety-nine (99) NBL rated divisions, as listed in this Sport Karate Magazine, at the end of the conference season are seeded according to their placement at the Super Grands World Games. The ratings are published in the June/August (appearing May 1), September/October (appearing August 1) and the final standings in the November/February (appearing in October) editions of Sport Karate Magazine (SMASH).
   
4. DIVISIONS - For 1999, the NBL rates ninety-nine (99) standard blackbelt divisions for juniors, adults and seniors, as listed below. The Super Grands has the same ninety-nine (99) blackbelt divisions to determine the world champions of each division. Most NBL tournaments have a minimum standard twenty-four (24) blackbelt divisions which closely resemble the expanded ninety-nine (99) rated divisions. All of the NBL international and national conference tournaments run a minimum of ninety-four (94) blackbelt divisions. Players may compete in as many different divisions at a tournament as they qualify for and wish to enter, but if a tournament offers a division with a greater breakdown than any of the standard ninety-nine (99) divisions, then no rating points will be awarded for that division.
   
5. RATINGS VERIFICATION / ERRORS - Verification for final ratings (Ratings in Nov-Feb issue - appearing after October 1) and errors in prior published standings must be done by point chart and received by the NBL between September 1 and September 30. A player that wants any errors corrected after that date will be charged $25 per change. (See SKIL/NBL point chart in the back of any Sport Karate Magazine or Section 3 of any SKITA Handbook).
   
6. WILD CARD SEED - The Super Grands also offers wild card seeding for each title division. This is a run-off of all non-rated players who compete in the pre run-off at the Super Grands immediately before each divi- sion starts. This is open competition to any player. The winner eams a fifth place (last place) seed for Super Grands eliminations play, which immediately follows the run-off.
   
7. COMPETITORS’ AGES - Competitors can only compete in their proper age division. Whatever their age is prior to January 1 of the competition year is the age that they compete at for the entire season in any NBL divisions and the Super Grands World Games. (Players turning 18, 35 or 42 during the competition season are allowed to advance to that age division when they turn that age, but points earned previous to their change will not transfer.)
   
8. RULES - The Super Grands and most NBL tournaments follow Sport Karate International Tournament Alliance Rules. (See the latest edition of the SKITA Handbook.)
   
9. SUPER GRANDS WORLD GAMES - The Super Grands is a six (6) day tournament held in November, December or January in a different world class location each year. It is held simultaneously with the Sport Karate Amateur Internationals, which is the final championship for the Sport Karate International (SKIL) rated players for both blackbelts and under blackbelts. The Super Grands is a closed competition that is only open to seeded players, or those players winning a wild card position at the tournament. NBL Championship awards in each division include the NBL World Championship blackbelt and coveted specially-struck world champion 10 carat gold ring. Over-sized plaque certificates are awarded for the Sport Karate Amateur Internationals champions. The Super Grands World Games/Sport Karate Amateur Internationals ends with the NBL and Sport Karate International Awards Banquet. The NBL Super Grands World Games champions and Sport Karate Amateur Internationals champions are featured in the March/May edition (appearing February 1) of Sport Karate Magazine each year.
   

1. CONFERENCE AWARDS - The junior and adult top point winners of each NBL conference are awarded with induction into the NBL Hall of Fame (H.O.F.) and receive their award plaques at the Sport Karate International Awards Banquet at the Super Grands each year. The awards are determined by a total of points earned in divisions in that conference by the player. To be eligible, a player must attend two (2) or more NBL tournaments in the conference. The adult HOF can be won by either an adult (18+) player or a senior (35+ or 42+) player, but seniors will only have adult (18+) divisional points used toward their total. However a senior’s point total will have substituted any senior (35+ or 42+) division for any single equivalent adult division if their points are higher in the senior division. Men’s and senior totals will include hard creative or hard musical forms, whichever is higher, but not both. Ties will be broken by giving the win to the tied player with the most first place conference wins from the divisions allowed to be used for their point totals. If still tied it will be broken by giving the win to the player with the most second place wins, etc.
   
2. EXECUTIVE AWARDS - H.O.F. awards for executives are chosen by the NBL executive office based upon dedication to the NBL. These awards include: promoter, tournament, commissioner, arbitrator, official, woman, man, photo-journalist and conference of the year. They receive their award plaques at the Sport Karate International Banquet at the Super Grands.
   
3. SUPER GRANDS HALL OF FAME AWARDS - The NBL Super Grands Hall of Fame players’ awards are determined by the most points obtained in Super Grands competition by a blackbelt. Players receive 3 points for 1st place, 2 points for 2nd place, 1 point for 3rd. The awards categories include junior male and female rookie and competitor of the year (4), adult male and female rookie and competitor of the year (4), and team of the year and runner-up team of the year (2). (Rookie refers to a blackbelt player’s first year in NBL competition at the Super Grands and is not affected by a prior year’s competition as an under black belt in an NBL Division. An adult HOF can be won by either an adult (18+) player or a senior (35+ or 42+) player, but seniors will only have adult (18+) divisional placements used toward their total. However a senior’s point total from their wins will have substituted any senior (35+ or 42+) divisional wins for any single equivalent adult division if their placement was higher in the senior division.The team award does not include points from team sparring, unless the sparring team was registered with their team name. If that is the case and if the team places in the top three (3) positions, then the team gets 3, 2 or 1 point toward its tally,
   depending upon the place it took.) Ties are broken by the 4th to 8th place wins. Winners’ notifications and Hall of Fame plaques are sent by mail.
   
   

Based upon students’ wins at both the Super Grands World Games and Sport Karate Amateur Internationals, the top 25 karate schools are announced in the first issue of Sport Karate Magazine after the Super Grands each year. Each of the winning schools will also receive an official letter from the Sport Karate International executive offices verifying their accomplishment, which they can submit to various media in their area for exposure and due recognition. The point structure in determining the top 25 schools is as follows. Super Grands and Amateur Internationals: 1st place - 3 points, 2nd - 2, 3rd - 1. The school award tallies do not include points from team competition. Only students who are members of and train at a school, and who legitimally indicate so (including the school’s instructor) on the reverse of their player’s card at the Super Grands/Amateur Internationals will count toward that school’s tally to win. The top schools will be sent a Hall of Fame plaque after the Super Grands.
NOTE: For any award which involves tallying of points, it is advisable that the individuals or groups concerned give us their tally of points well before the Super Grands (or within two (2) weeks after the Super Grands/Amateur Internationals for Super Grands Hall of Fame and Top 25 Sport Karate School Awards). Once we announce or print a Hall of Fame award winner, we probably will not be able to change it even if an error is found.

NBL Player Membership (PDF)